Order of operations for deep water
Professionals follow this general sequence when water stands more than an inch or two deep across a basement floor.
Make the space electrically safe
Cut power to the basement, and leave appliances sitting in water alone until an electrician or the utility clears them.
Find out why the water is there
A broken supply line, a failed water heater, a sump pump that quit and groundwater pushing in during a storm each lead to a different next step.
Set a submersible pump at the low point
Usually near the floor drain or sump pit, on a firm surface so it doesn't suck up debris.
Send the discharge well away
The hose should empty downhill and away from the foundation, not into a window well or the neighbor's yard. Keep contaminated water out of the street gutter.
Switch to extraction for the last inch
Pumps can't pick up the thin layer left on the floor or the water inside carpet. Extraction tools take over from there.
Why pacing can matter after a storm
When a plumbing failure floods a basement, the soil outside is usually dry, and you can pump as fast as the equipment allows. Storm flooding is different. When the ground around the house is saturated, water presses hard on the outside of the walls. Pump everything out too fast and you remove the counter-pressure inside, and in severe flooding that imbalance has cracked or pushed in foundation walls. For heavy groundwater flooding, many emergency-management guides suggest lowering the water a few feet per day over several days, and checking whether it rises again overnight.
Most Aurora basement floods are less dramatic: a few inches of water from a water heater or a failed sump pump. But if the water keeps coming back after you pump, the ground is feeding it, and that cause has to be fixed before extraction and drying make sense. The saturated clay soils common across much of the Denver metro can keep pushing water in well after a storm ends.
Before you rent or run a pump yourself
- Power to the flooded area is off, and no cords run through standing water
- The pump plugs into a GFCI-protected outlet above the water, or a properly placed generator
- Generators run outdoors only, far from windows and doors, never in the garage
- The discharge hose ends well away from the house and slopes downhill
- You know whether the water is clean or came from a sewer line
- You've taken photos and video of the water level before pumping starts
Common questions
Can a shop vacuum handle a flooded basement?
For a thin film over a small area, sometimes. For inches of water across a room, or wet carpet, it's far too slow, and the motor isn't rated for continuous wet use around that much water.
Should the floor drain stay open?
If the sewer isn't backing up, the floor drain helps. If water is coming up through the drain, you have a sewer backup, and the water should be treated as contaminated.
General information for Aurora, not a quote or professional advice. In an emergency, call 911.